Bears notebook: Top pick leaves practice with stiff back

Thursday

No. 1 draft pick Chris Williams walked out halfway through the Chicago Bears’ second practice of training camp Thursday because of stiffness in his lower back.

No. 1 draft pick Chris Williams walked out halfway through the Chicago Bears’ second practice of training camp Thursday because of stiffness in his lower back.

“We hope it’s not anything serious and we will get him out here before long,” coach Lovie Smith said.

“We will always err in favor of the players, but he was clearly to the point where he couldn’t practice. When I say there was some stiffness, I don’t know exactly how much, but he couldn’t practice. The guys know the difference between pain and injury. It seemed like it was more of an injury.”

Cornerback Charles Tillman was also absent again for personal reasons.

Bears cut Runnels

The Bears made one roster move Wednesday, cutting third-year fullback J.D. Runnels and signing Ryan Grice-Mullen, a receiver out of Hawaii who last played for Houston.

Runnels, a sixth-round Chicago draft pick in 2006, spent the entire 2007 season on injured reserve and appeared in two games as a rookie, primarily as a blocking back.

Camp sights (and sounds)

Rashied Davis sparked the biggest applause with two long TD catches. On the first, he burned rookie cornerback Zack Bowman by three steps and caught a perfect pass from Rex Grossman over his shoulder. … Hunter Hillenmeyer intercepted Kyle Orton. … Grossman fumbled a snap late in practice. … Leslie Majors, who is one of four players without his own number, broke up several passes. He’s 46 on defense. Running back Matt Lawrence is 46 on offense.

“Make sure you write down that he pushed off,” safety Mike Brown yelled to reporters.

Lovie Smith seemed to agree, singling out Graham for praise.

“We’ve been impressed with him,” Smith said. “Good size. Good speed. Knows what to do with the ball once he gets it. He’s taking advantage of an opportunity, with Charles (Tillman) not being able to practice. We like what he’s done. He seems to show up around the ball each day.”